‘We need to show a plan that we’re trying to revive this entity’

ALBION – The Village Board was urged to step up code enforcement on unkempt properties, and also to pursue state grant funds to add more housing options for residents.

Annette Finch, a long-time village resident, spoke during last week’s board meeting. She said many properties in the village are in rough shape, and it detracts on the entire community.

“We have skunks going up and down the street,” Finch said. “We want people to come into the Albion to live and do business. What’s going on? It’s absolutely disgusting for Albion to look the way it does.”

Janet Salvatore, a member of the Village of Albion Planning Board, also encouraged the board to pursue several different grant options to upgrade the housing stock in the village.

She said there are many programs that would add more quality homes and apartments in the village.

“There is money out there to be gotten,” Salvatore said. “But we need to show a plan that we’re trying to revive this entity.”

She said architectural students from the University of Buffalo could help develop a plan to better utilize upper level apartments in the downtown and other housing in Albion.

“We need to do something to stop the influx away from the village,” she said.

The village is working to submit a grant for the $4.5 NY Forward grant program that includes money to upgrade housing, especially apartments in the downtown.

Vinny Navarra of Albion also would like to develop smaller houses on 25 acres off Allen Road, in an area behind Tops, that could be targeted to senior citizens. The village grantwriter, Jay Grasso, said there are funding programs to help with a senior housing project in the village.

Salvatore said the village currently has a shortage of homes for people to buy. She said rehabbing the second and third floors in the downtown is one option for housing.

But the Main Street and Bank Street business area currently is not too appealing for residents and businesses. She said several properties on just being “held.” They are vacant with no apparent push to be utilized.

“There is a lot of work that needs to be done downtown to make it more attractive and friendlier,” Salvatore said.

ALBION – Jeff Holler has been cooking for years at Bullard Park, bringing a grill to the site and making hamburgers, hot dogs and other food with the Masonic Lodge.

Other groups also bring grills to the park to serve food for other special events and festivals.

Holler would like to see a concession stand at the park near the football field. He pitched the idea to the Village Board last week.

The stand could also have space to store equipment for the youth football program. Right now those are kept in a resident’s garage.

Holler said the small building also could have a spot for an announcer with a PA system for the games.

Albion Mayor Angel Javier Jr. said he is open to the project but he and other board members would like to see a rendering of the building.

Holler said he would work on getting more details for the building.

“This is just the beginning stages,” he said. “We didn’t want to pour money into it if the board isn’t interested.”

Photo courtesy of Luke Kantor/Iroquois Job Corps: Members of Medina Rotary are pictured at Iroquois Job Corps Center, where they visited recently. From left are Bill Bixler, Dawn Meland, Job Corps Operations Director John Thomas, Rotary president Peter Bartula, Cindy Hewitt and Gloria Brent.

MEDINA – Several members of Medina Rotary recently visited Iroquois Job Corps. This included Cindy Hewitt, Bill Bixler, Dawn Meland, club president Peter Bartula and Gloria Brent.

Their purpose was to bring together business, professional leaders and community members in order to provide humanitarian service in the community and workplace and to advance goodwill and peace.

Job Corps Center director Dennis Essom and operations director John Thomas have both become members of Medina Rotary and invited the group to visit the Center.

Job Corps is planning on making friendship benches for Medina Rotary, which will be placed throughout Medina. Locations have not yet been chosen or details worked out, Thomas said.

Thomas added that Iroquois Job Corps and Medina Rotary are planning several community service projects in the near future.

United Methodist Church steps up as key donor

The Wendel engineering firm did this rendering of the new proposed basketball courts at Bullard Park. They will be built along Route 31 at the former skate park area.

ALBION – A group working on building new basketball courts at Bullard Park has the funding lined up to complete the project.

The Albion United Methodist Church stepped up and agreed to pay for two of the new hoops, a final top coat, the painting and lining of the courts, fencing on the south side and concrete barriers to keep vehicles from driving on the courts.

Susan Oschmann is shown on the old basketball court at Bullard, which was in rough condition.

The United Methodist Church also recently paid for a three-wheel bike for Cycling Without Age to give senior citizens rides.

The church is trying to support projects that benefit seniors and also youth in the community, said Susan Oschmann, one of the leaders of the “Bounce for Bullard” project.

Sanford Church, the Orleans County Court judge, also is donating for two of the new hoops.

There is a chance the new setup could be ready next month, Oschmann said.

In June, Keeler Construction put down the first layer for two full-size outdoor basketball courts. That was funded with a $40,000 grant from the James and Juli Boeheim Foundation. The Greater Albion Recreation and Events, Inc., a non-profit organization, secured the funding with assistance from the Orleans County United Way.

The effort was still about $100,000 short until the recent donors came forward.

The top surface will be painted purple with white lines for the basketball courts, and yellow lines for the markings for four pickleball courts. There are portable nets for the pickleball courts. (Bounce for Bullard is paying for the lines on two of the courts through its fundraisers.)

Oschmann said there will be 3-on-3 basketball tournaments at the new courts, and basketball camps. There will be time too for people to use the space for pickleball, an emerging sport similar to tennis but in a smaller area.

That will have the basketball court effort nearly done. Oschmann said in the future more fencing could be added for all four sides, and the committee would like benches. The group would also like to see smaller quarter courts for basketball at the neighborhood parks in the Village of Albion.

She said many entities helped move the project along.

“Everybody is really putting helping hands together,” she said. “It is really amazing.”

Thruway tolls for most vehicles will go up 5 percent on Jan. 1, the first increase for E-ZPass customers in 14 years, the New York State Thruway Authority Board of Directors announced today.

“The toll adjustment creates a responsible, stable financial plan and ensures the Authority can meet its future capital and infrastructure needs,” the Authority stated in a news release. “The Thruway is a user-fee supported roadway and receives no dedicated federal, state or local tax dollars.”

E-ZPass customers are the most frequent users of the Thruway and receive the steepest discounts and highest level of convenience for payment, the Authority said. They will pay another 5 percent increase in January 2027.

Non-NY E-ZPass and Tolls by Mail customers pay a differential and are much more infrequent users of the system. While E-ZPass customers will pay 5 percent more in 2024, the non-NY E-ZPass and Tolls by Mail users will see the pay differential go up from 30 percent more to 70 percent higher than the E-ZPass rate.

The differential covers additional processing costs and incentivizes customers to get a NY E-ZPass tag for the easiest and most affordable way to pay their tolls, the Authority said.

Motorists can view what the adjusted toll rates will be on the 2024 Toll Adjustment Calculator on the Thruway Authority’s website.

“The toll adjustments approved today by the Board of Directors follow a year-long public process and represent a responsible approach to ensure continued investment in the 570-mile Thruway system for years to come,” said Thruway Authority Board of Directors Chair Joanne M. Mahoney. “The Thruway Authority receives no dedicated federal, state or local tax dollars and relies primarily on toll dollars to maintain and operate the Thruway which is one of the safest and reliable toll roads in the country.”

The adjustment keeps the Thruway toll rates among the lowest in the country compared to similar toll roads. The Thruway base passenger vehicle toll rate is less than $0.05 per mile, compared to the Ohio Turnpike ($0.06 per mile), the New Jersey Turnpike ($0.11 and $0.31 cents per mile) and the Pennsylvania Turnpike ($0.14 per mile), the Authority said.

400 attend celebration as Lockport finishes 10-year, $1.5 million project

Photos by Tom Rivers

LOCKPORT – It was a day of celebration in the City of Lockport on Saturday for the dedication of a 14-statue Lock Tenders Tribute Monument.

The top photo shows descendants of the people memorialized in the statues. The descendants are wearing the blue sashes.

The monument honors the canal lock tenders who worked 12-hour days and were responsible for opening and closing the locks for boats to safely pass through. They also worked on maintenance at the site.

One of the descendants sits next to one of the new statues. Six were unveiled on Saturday. The first three were unveiled in 2020 with five more added in 2021.

These 12 Lockport Lock Tenders plus a young girl were photographed in 1897 by Frank B. Clench. The tenders were part of a 20-person workforce at the locks in 1897.

A big crowd of about 400 gathered to celebrate the completion of the monument. Thirteen of the statues are installed on the stairs in the Lockport Locks where the tenders were photographed nearly 125 years ago.

The other statue of the photographer shows Frank B. Clench taking the iconic image.

This photo shows David Kinyon, chairman of the Lockport Locks Heritage District which pushed for the Lock Tender statuary.

“Lockport’s intent has been to explain the role of the workers who made the Erie Canal such a tremendous success in opening the interior of our country to development,” Kinyon said.

“Other communities have celebrated the Erie Canal by depicting those who dug the canal, the captains who operated canal boats and even the mules who pulled the packet and freight boats,” Kinyon said. “Lockport celebrates those who manually opened and closed the 5-ton wooden gates that raised and lowered boats through the 363-mile man-made waterway.”

Kinyon speaks during the ceremony on Saturday after the six new statues were unveiled. The six new statues were covered up until their names were announced later in the program. The descendants were given VIP seating for the event.

Kinyon said the $1.5 million project has been a decade in the making. The group hoped to have it done by 2025, the 200^th anniversary of the 363-mile-long Erie Canal.

The project reached the finish line two years ahead of schedule.

He praised contributors to the project, including $575,000 from Niagara County (using funds through the relicensing of the Niagara Power Project), $550,000 from the state and Canal Corp., $150,000 from the Grigg Lewis Foundation, $100,000 from the John R. Oishei Foundation, and 35 businesses in Lockport that gave $100 or more. There were also numerous fundraisers with raffle tickets, and merchandise celebrating the lock tenders, from mugs, jewelry, magnets and shirts.

Susan Geissler of Youngstown, center, designed and crafted the statues which is now the largest outdoor bronze monument in Western New York.

She sits on the steps after the ceremony for a group photo with the statues.

“It’s been a wonderful journey,” she said about the project.

She said she has develop many “wonderful friendships and relationships” through the effort that honored the lock tenders.

“I’m very humbled and proud I could you something historic that will last forever,” she said.

Geissler was presented a citation and commendation from the State Legislature which was presented by State Sen. Rob Ortt and Assembly members Michael Norris and Angelo Morinello.

Norris praised Geissler for her painstaking artistry, “right down to a wrinkle on a forehead.”

Ortt noted his Senate district includes canal communities from Niagara, Orleans and western Monroe counties. Throughout the state all canal towns are proud of their heritage, but Ortt said no community is more synonymous with the canal than Lockport.

“She has done a remarkable job with this,” Ortt said about Geissler.

Brian Stratton, director of the State Canal Corp., said the tribute to the lock tenders highlights people who were critical to the canal’s operation at its peak. He praised the Lockport community for adding an attraction along the historic waterway in time for the bicentennial celebration in 2025.

Niagara County Legislator Richard Andres praised the volunteers who pushed for the lock tender tribute, who worked for a decade to line up financing, select an artist, research the people in the original photo, and get the community to back the ambitious effort.

“We certainly wouldn’t be here without vision and a lot of communities are lacking vision,” he said. “We are happy to support people with vision and tenacity and follow through, which is sometimes rare in government.”

Andres, the county legislator, said the Erie Canal deserves more prominence locally and nationally. The canal helped turn cities on the eastern seaboard into world powers, he said.

“The canal changed the world and you’re sitting right here in the midst of it,” said Andres, a history teacher at North Tonawanda. “We need to tell people what the canal did for the world.”

Craig Williams, president of the Canal Society of New York State, said the statues will help people better connect to the history of the canal.

“It’s not just a paragraph being read,” he said. “Getting people to pay attention is essential in history. Here people can get up close and touch these statues. Once you have that attention, you get a better appreciation of history.”

People enjoy sitting and interacting with the statues after the dedication ceremony on Saturday.

Information from Kendall school district

KENDALL – Due to a power outage at Kendall Central School today, students will be dismissed early, district superintendent Nick Picardo said.

Grades 7-12 will be bussed home at 10:30 a.m. Grades K-6 will be bussed home at 11:30 a.m., according to an announcement on the district website.

“If you usually pick up your elementary student in the afternoon, you can pick them up at 11 a.m. in the back parking lot today,” the announcement states. “If you are unable to pick them up, they will be sent home on the bus at 11:30 a.m.”

Afternoon career technical education (CTE) students will not report to WEMOCO today. Athletics will resume this afternoon per the usual schedule.

Requirement for businesses with 4 or employees is effort to address wage disparities

Press Release, Gov. Kathy Hochul’s Office

Governor Kathy Hochul on Sunday celebrated New York’s groundbreaking pay transparency law, which took effect Sept. 17.

The landmark legislation, which Governor Hochul signed into law last year, requires businesses across New York State with four or more employees to include compensation ranges in all advertisements for job, promotion, and transfer opportunities.

The legislation underscores New York’s commitment to addressing wage disparities and promoting transparency in compensation practices across the state and builds on the Governor’s commitment to supporting and empowering workers.

“With the implementation of our pay transparency law, New York is once again at the cutting edge of promoting fairness and equity in the workplace,” Governor Hochul said. “Wage disparities have deepened inequality in our state for far too long and put countless workers – particularly women and people of color – at a disadvantage. I was proud to sign this legislation to help level the playing field across our state, and I will continue to work with the Legislature on solutions to support, protect, and empower workers until we finally close the wage gap in New York.”

The law requires all job, promotion or transfer opportunities physically performed, at least in part, in the State of New York to include a range of pay when advertised. This applies to any opportunities that are performed outside the state, including remote or telecommuting opportunities, that report to a supervisor, office or other work site in New York State.

Pay ranges must consist of the minimum and maximum annual salary or hourly compensation believed in good faith to be accurate at the time of posting. Employers must also clearly state if a position is commission-based.

This law marks a significant step towards leveling the playing field, ensuring that employees have access to vital compensation information, and empowering them to make informed decisions about their careers.

A pay transparency fact sheet and FAQ document are available on the NYSDOL website with additional information and guidance on the new law. Proposed regulations for the new law were published in the State Register on September 13, 2023. The public has 60 days to review and comment on the regulations.

As part of the Pay Transparency Law’s enforcement, NYSDOL holds the authority to ensure compliance, and individuals are encouraged to file complaints if job advertisements do not contain compensation ranges. NYSDOL is committed to a strong enforcement and penalty structure for those employers that refuse to comply.

NYSDOL will actively engage stakeholders and create helpful guidance to educate 500,000 businesses, workers, and job seekers as it conducts the public outreach campaign required by this new law. After a period of focused outreach to businesses, the Department will utilize complaint data to determine if patterns of non-compliance emerge in certain industries or certain regions of the state.

New York State Department of Labor Commissioner Roberta Reardon said, “Transparency in compensation is not merely about numbers—it’s about fairness, empowerment, and the recognition of every individual’s worth. This law is a monumental step in ensuring that every New Yorker has the information they need to make informed career decisions, fostering an environment where equity isn’t just an ideal but a daily practice.”

MEDINA – Medina High School’s Class of 1963 celebrated their 60th class reunion Saturday night at the Walsh Hotel.

Georgia Thomas of Medina was organizer of the event, attended by 21 class members and their guests.

Two classmates who came the farthest were Ian Clark of Florida and Emee Richelson of New York City.

The Class of 1963 graduated 103, in addition to two foreign exchange students. Class officers were Bob Winters, president, who attended with his wife and classmate Marsha Page Winters; Ray Kozloski, vice president; Janis Warren, treasurer; and Helen Slack, secretary. Only Winters attended the 60th reunion.

The Winters dated all throughout high school, Thomas said.

The evening was special for two graduates, Bob Sanderson and Bill Blount, who have been best friends since fourth grade.

“When I moved to Medina, Bob was the first kid I met and we’ve been friends ever since,” Blount said. “We attended college together, opened a restaurant together, double dated and had cottages at the lake together.”

Photos by Ginny Kropf: (Left) Dawn Meland wears her late husband Harry Flatt’s class T-shirt at the Class of 1963 reunion Saturday night. On the back are the names of all the classmates. Flatt died in July. (Right) Bill Blount, left, and Bob Sanderson have been best friends since fourth grade. They enjoy each other’s company here at their 60th class reunion.

One guest who “crashed” the reunion was Dawn Meland of Medina. Meland, who graduated in 1966, was married to 1960 class member Harry Flatt.

“Harry died July 22 and I thought I’d stop in to just say hello and have a drink,” Meland said. “They asked me to stay, so I did.”

Meland was wearing Flatt’s class T-shirt with the names of all the graduates printed on the back.

Emee Richelson, who brought her brother John of Fairport said she’s been to the 25th and the 50th reunions and thought she’d attend this one because it was 60 years.

Sandy Howell Meade and Carole Schrader Watson had a great time sharing old memories of growing up in Millville.

Thomas announced that classmate Donna Green Grabowski had suggested they nominate deceased classmate Warren Blount to Medina High School’s Distinguished Alumni Hall of Fame. She urged all the classmates to join her in the nomination to honor Blount, who had a distinguished career in the military and medical field.

Blount served in Vietnam and received a Purple Heart, Navy Cross, Bronze Star and Naval Commendation Medal. He received a degree as a physician assistant and became a vascular surgeon’s assistant, helping with 6,000 open heart and transplant surgeries. He was an emergency physician at the Capitol Region Medical Center. Thomas said Blount went to work on a scooter, as he had lost a leg due to his injuries in Vietnam. He is buried in Arlington National Cemetery.

Thomas also informed the class she had collected enough donations to have a tree planted in the village in honor of the class, and possibly two.

While the class never had a reunion until its 25th, and then two since, they decided because they are all aging, they wanted to get together again next year. Sanderson volunteered to organize a get-together next summer.

The class has lost 45 members that they know of. Thomas said there were some for whom she had no contact information.

Photos by Tom Rivers

ALBION – Firefighters check on any hot spots at a trailer on Phipps Road in Albion. Firefighters were dispatched to the scene at about 6:15 p.m.

Lisa McGuire was home and used water from a garden hose to put out a small fire from a plug-in heater that was malfunctioning, said her husband Chris McGuire. Four children were also inside and everyone was able to get out safely.

Mrs. McGuire was checked out at the scene for smoke inhalation.

Firefighters from Albion, Barre, Carlton, Medina and Shelby responded, as well as Monroe Ambulance, the Orleans County Emergency Management Office and Orleans County Sheriff’s Office.

Provided photo

KENDALL – The Town of Kendall is making the Town Hall available to pay school taxes. Pictured from left include Kendall Town Council members Paul Jennings and Barb Flow, Town Supervisor Tony Cammarata, school tax collector Debbie Ryan, Town Council member Margaret Lynn Szozda, Kendall Board of Education President Lisa Levett, Kendall District Superintendent Nick Picardo, Superintendent and Christopher Nasella, the district’s business administrator.

The town is making the town hall available for the tax collector to make it easier for district residents to pay their taxes in person and get a receipt, Cammarata and Picardo said.

The district continues to have a drop box on the north side of the Elementary School (the playground side of the building) at 1932 Kendall Rd. The payment can also be mailed to Kendall Central School District, 1932 Kendall Rd., Kendall, NY 14476.

Taxpayers who want to pay in person can meet Debbie Ryan, the school tax collector, at the Kendall Town Hall at 1873 Kendall Rd.

Here is a list of dates and times that in-person payments may be made at the Kendall Town Hall:

• Sept. 21: 1:30 to 6:30 p.m.
• Sept. 28: 1:30 to 6:30 p.m.
• Sept. 29: 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.
• Oct. 2: 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
• Oct. 5: 1:30 to 6:30 p.m.
• Oct. 12: 1:30 to 6:30 p.m.
• Oct. 19: 1:30 to 6:30 p.m.
• Oct. 26: 1:30 to 6:30 p.m.
• Oct. 30: 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.
• Oct. 31: 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.

Photos and information courtesy of Medina Marching Band Boosters

HILTON – Medina competed for the first time this season when they traveled to Hilton on Saturday.

Medina was one of two schools in the SS1 division and came in second with a score of 75.15, behind East Irondequoit in 1st place with 78.20.

Eight bands performed during the event. Pride of Rochester was first to perform. The group is not affiliated with any school in particular, but is more a community organization. They are not scored.

In LS3 Greece took 1st place with a score of 74.05 followed by Hilton at 68.90.

Webster was the only school in LS2 and scored 78.95. In the National class Victor came in 1st place with 76.35 followed by Lancaster in 2nd at 75.65.

Medina hosts our home show on Saturday with the Fall Festival of Bands at Vet’s Memorial Park starting at 5:30 p.m.

Site ultimately went to Batavia, Ill., leaving Kendall’s rural character intact

This dramatic headline appeared in the Times-Union newspaper, December 12, 1965.

By Catherine Cooper, Orleans County Historian

“Illuminating Orleans” – Vol. 3, No. 30

KENDALL – In the mid-1960s, a site in the Town of Kendall was considered as the possible location of an atomic research laboratory.

The proposed site was the farmland bounded on the north by Lakeshore Road, on the east by Kendall Road, on the south by Carr Road and on the west by Peter Smith Road. Descriptions of the size of the site varied from 500 acres to 3,000 acres to even 5,000 acres.

A team of scientists and analysts from the Argonne National Laboratories in Chicago, accompanied by construction experts, toured the site on Dec. 11, 1965. They were greeted by Rep. Barber B. Conable Jr., R-Batavia, who was a member of the House Committee on Atomic Activities, Kendall Supervisor Michael Paduchak, and Arthur Eddy who represented the Albion Chamber of Commerce.

Local representatives pointed out that the site would have access to an unlimited water supply from Lake Ontario, and an adequate water supply from Albion for the projected 2,000 employees. Other features such as proximity to airports, the Thruway, as well as an educated employee pool from Buffalo and Rochester colleges, were also emphasized.

Construction of the $334 million plant would take eight years. Salaries and operation costs were anticipated at $60 million annually.

Analyst Thomas H. Fields stressed that the installation would not present any hazard to workers or residents since it was basically involved in a process to investigate nuclear energy. “There is no fallout, the factory is quiet, clean and will look like an academic campus.”

The headlines of the day referred to the facility as an “atom-smasher,” but the preferred current terminology is “particle accelerator.”

In either case, the purpose of the facility was to accelerate particles of atoms to almost the speed of light and then crash them into each other at extremely high speed in order to understand matter, or “the secrets of the Universe.”

Local reaction to the proposal was mixed, according to the Medina Daily Journal. Many residents recognized the increase in land values and the long-range economic benefits for the county. Others regretted the loss of some of the finest farmland in the area, and the displacement of families who had lived there for several generations.

As it transpired, none of the New York State sites were selected. The honor of the location of the Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory (Fermilab) went to Batavia, Il., 45 miles west of Chicago.

When completed, the Batavia site included the Tevatron tunnel, a circular particle accelerator. Buried 25 feet underground, it had a circumference of four miles and was equipped with superconducting magnets chilled to minus 450 degrees Fahrenheit. Over 5,000 tons of armor plating from US Navy warships and former Aircraft carriers were used to shield the outer walls of the accelerator ring.

The Tevatron yielded a rich scientific legacy, including the discovery of the Quark, a fundamental constituent of matter but it was superseded by a faster physics lab in Switzerland and ceased operations on Sept. 29, 2011.

Fermilab is still “solving the mysteries of matter, energy, space and time” and is now designated as a National Environmental Research Park. The public is welcome to explore its science and enjoy its natural areas.

Meanwhile, Kendall retains its rural integrity.